Diablo Lake Camping

Since Ron and I decided to try out some new campgrounds in Washington this summer, I listened to the recommendation of our neighbor and reserved a campsite next to Diablo Lake which is nestled in the North Cascades.  This lake is known for its brilliant, turquoise color which is due to the fact that surrounding glaciers grind the rocks into a fine powder.  This "glacial flour" (as it is called) stays suspended in the water giving the lake its bright, blue hue.  We headed out on Friday, August 11th, on a very hot day and arrived at our campsite a few hours later.  Ron and I were dripping with sweat by the time we finished setting up camp.  We then spent the next two days enjoying our secluded campsite, the stunning (yet freezing) lake, an amazing meteor shower, biking around the campground, and fishing in the lake.  We had a great time exploring another area of Washington state!

Logan roasting some marshmallows after dinner our first night there.

The kids and I and our campfire.

Logan's eating his s'more and showing off his messy face!

Sisters enjoying their s'mores by the campfire.

Exploring our secluded campsite (complete with some huge, fallen logs) the next morning, Saturday, August 12th.

Little Ella standing on a large stump.

The kids and I standing on a fallen log.

We left our campsite after breakfast to drive part of the stunning, North Cascades Highway that our campground is located on.  We stopped at a view point of Diablo Lake and enjoyed the amazing views--even with a very smokey sky from the forest fires that are still burning in the area.

Another shot of the Hartland fam and Diablo Lake.

The kids and the beautiful, turquoise water behind them.

Mama and the kiddos checking out the view.

Another shot of the kids at the view point.

After returning to our campground for lunch and Ella's afternoon nap, we ventured down to the shores of Diablo Lake.

The rustic bridge that we crossed driving to and from our campground.

Since the water was absolutely freezing, we didn't go swimming in it (and barely made it past our feet).  Instead, we enjoyed throwing some rocks in the water.

Sisters at play!

Darling Ella and mama.

A family shot with the lake in the background.

Ella enjoyed playing in the tent multiple times while we were in our campsite.  Here she is peeking her head out while we were making dinner on Saturday evening.

A close-up of our cutie.

Lia and Logan hanging out next to the fire.

Enjoying dinner in our campground.  Although I didn't take any pictures of this, we enjoyed one of the most amazing meteor showers that I have ever seen Saturday night after Ella had gone to bed.  We took shifts heading down to the dock so that Ella wouldn't be left alone in the campsite.  Lia and I went first and Ron and Logan went second.  Lia and I just laid there on the dock and saw so many shooting stars that we lost count!  We even saw two, amazing stars that shot all the way across the sky--one with a red tail and one with a green tail.  I have never seen anything like it!  We were so lucky to be up in the mountains, away from the lights of civilization, on the evening when this meteor shower had been predicted to take place.  It is a memory that I will never forget!

On Sunday, August 13th, we ventured back down to the dock after breakfast so that Ron, Lia, and Logan could have a chance to do some fishing.

The girls fishing away--Lia with her real pole and Ella with her toy one.

A close-up of Logan.

Lia fishing with the beautiful, wild flowers behind her.

An adorable shot of Logan as we headed back to the campground for lunch and packing up.

One final bike ride before heading home!